Inventing our future Collective action for a sustainable economy

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Foreword 5
Achievements of the strategy to date 6
Chapter 1 – Vision, aims and objectives 10
Introduction 10
Document structure 11
Who is this document for? 11
Vision 12
Aims 12
Strategic objectives 12
The regional context 13
The Regional Social Strategy development process 14
Timescales 14
Chapter 2 – An overview of social exclusion 15
Profile of the region 15
Definitions 18
Social exclusion in the East of England, its main causes and impacts 19
Strategic Objective 1 (SO1): To tackle poverty and reduce income inequalities 19
i) Who experiences poverty in the East of England? 19
ii) Main influencing factors 20
SO2: To promote access to work, tackle low pay and improve conditions of work 21
i) Barriers to escaping poverty and social exclusion through work
SO3: To improve the life chances of children from disadvantaged backgrounds and support
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vulnerable young people in the transition to adulthood 25
i) Child poverty 25
ii) Parenting 25
iii) Transition points 26
iv) Transition to adulthood 26
v) Education 26
vi) Health 27
SO4: To improve the life chances of adults through earning and skills development 28
SO5: To promote active ageing and reduce social exclusion of older people 32
i) Housing 32
ii) Health 33
iii) Services 33
iv) Income and the labour market 34
v) Communities and social networks 34
SO6: To support the development of sustainable communities 34
i) Housing 34
ii) Neighbourhoods and the environment 38
iii) Cultural opportunities 39
iv) Crime 39
v) Health 40